Server systems having redundant power arrangements may incorporate two or more power supply modules that are configured to continuously supply maximum power to the system when either an alternating current (AC) power source or one of the modules fails. For example, if the peak workload power consumed from a conventional redundant power subsystem containing two power modules is PMAX, each of the modules may typically be rated at PMAX or greater to maintain system operation when a failure occurs.
Power supplies are typically sized larger to deliver the maximum power PMAX that the system may need. However, since systems are not often used to capacity, a smaller power supply may detect an abnormal condition and generate an interrupt to signal the servers to throttle back until the power comes back into an acceptable range.